Department for Transport

Northern

Mike Hill: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, with reference to the Answer of 11 January 2016 to Question 21124, what (a) premium and (b) subsidy payments the Northern franchisee is expected to make or receive in each year of that franchise's duration.

Grant Shapps: The final subsidy paid to Arriva Rail North in 2016/17 was £281m which includes the net financial impact of allowable Changes that have taken place to the Franchise Agreement. The final subsidy to be paid in respect of the 2017/18 and 2018/19 financial years is still not definitively known, as the financial impact of allowable Changes to the Franchise Agreement is still being finalised. The final subsidy to be paid this year and in future years will be the contracted amount, again revised due to allowable Changes to the Franchise Agreement.

Aviation

Helen Whately: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he plans to publish a response to the consultation document entitled, Aviation 2050-the future of UK aviation, published in December 2019.

Grant Shapps: It remains the government's intention to publish an Aviation 2050 strategy later this year, which will respond to the recent consultation.

Govia Thameslink Railway

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many times Thameslink Service trains ran without a second member of staff and stopped at unstaffed or part-time staffed stations in 2018.

Grant Shapps: The Department does not hold this information. Govia Thameslink Railway, the operator of Thameslink services, has procedures in place for instances where a service operating without a second member of staff on board calls at an unstaffed station. For passengers who require assistance, there are a range of measures in place depending on the type of assistance that is required and the specific station. These measures are set out in Thameslink’s Disabled Persons Protection Policy (DPPP) which is available through this link: https://www.thameslinkrailway.com/travel-information/travel-help/assisted-travel/disabled-persons-protection-policy.

Southern

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the effect of (a) driver controlled operation and (b) stations which are unstaffed or staffed part-time on accessibility for disabled people who wish to travel without pre-booking on Southern Railways.

Grant Shapps: The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) and the Rail Safety and Standards Board (RSSB) have both confirmed that the driver operating the doors is a safe method of working. It is vital that train operators have policies in place so that passengers with disabilities are able to travel with confidence. ORR is the organisation which is responsible for the approval and monitoring of operators’ Disabled People’s Protection Policies (DPPP). Following the introduction of driver-controlled operation on Southern, ORR carried out a period of enhanced monitoring to ensure that policies were in place on Southern so that disabled passengers, regardless of whether they had pre-booked assistance or chose to travel spontaneously, and regardless of whether they were travelling to a staffed or unstaffed station, were able to complete their journey. ORR concluded that GTR had provided assurance that it has the systems and processes in place for this purpose. ORR continues to monitor operators’ compliance with their DPPP, and the Department supports it in doing so.

Southern: Industrial Disputes

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 13 March 2019 to Question 230103 on Southern Railways, what proportion of the trains cancelled due to there being no conductor was due to (a) official and (b) alleged unofficial industrial action.

Grant Shapps: The Department does not hold information on the reasons why a conductor was not available to operate those services.

Southern

Lloyd Russell-Moyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what information his Department holds on driver controlled operation on Southern Rail services.

Grant Shapps: The operation of services is a matter for the operator and they are generally best placed to respond to queries regarding practices like driver-controlled operation.

Department for Transport: Credit Unions

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 9 July 2019 to Question 271332, for what reasons his Department does not offer a payroll deduction service to enable employees to join a credit union; and if he will make a statement.

Grant Shapps: I can confirm my department currently does not have the facility to allow staff to join a credit union through payroll deductions. Staff can still make arrangements to contribute to a credit union via direct debit. The department does offer employees a wide range of benefits which are paid for through deductions from payroll.

South Western Railway: Industrial Disputes

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 25 July 2018 to Question 166508 on South Western Railway: Industrial Disputes, what estimate he has made of (a) lost revenue and (b) other costs incurred by South Western as a result of official industrial action.

Grant Shapps: This information is subject to commercial confidentiality between the parties.

South Western Railway: Industrial Disputes

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 25 July 2018 to Question 166508 on South Western Railway: Industrial Disputes, what payments have been made to reimburse the company for revenues lost as a result of official industrial action.

Grant Shapps: This information is subject to commercial confidentiality between the parties.

South Western Railway: Industrial Disputes

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 25 July 2018 to Question 166508 on South Western Railway: Industrial Disputes, whether (a) he and (b) officials in his Department have provided advice South Western on payments that will be made to reimburse that company for revenues lost as a result of official industrial action.

Grant Shapps: This information is subject to commercial confidentiality between the parties.

Department of Health and Social Care

Sepsis: Health Services

Christina Rees: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policies of the recommendations of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Sepsis Annual Report 2019; and if he will make a statement.

Christina Rees: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure better use of data interoperability to identify patients most at risk of sepsis.

Christina Rees: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the recommendations of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Sepsis Annual Report 2019, if he will commit to commissioning a public awareness campaign on sepsis to (a) make more people aware of and (b) improve survival rates for people experiencing that condition.

Caroline Dinenage: The United Kingdom’s five-year antimicrobial resistance (AMR) strategy, published in January 2019, includes the commitment to develop a real-time patient level data source of a patient’s infection, treatment and resistance history which will be used to inform their treatment and the development of interventions to tackle severe infection, sepsis and AMR. This commitment was reaffirmed in the open consultation ‘Advancing our health: prevention in the 2020s’, published by the Department and Cabinet Office on 22 July 2019.Public Health England continues to raise awareness of the signs and symptoms of sepsis by building sepsis messaging into the national Start4life Information Service for Parents email programme which targets parents of zero to five-year olds. Any nationally supported campaigns must be aimed at appropriate audiences and deliver measurable outcomes. The Department looks to NHS England and NHS Improvement’s Cross-System Sepsis Programme Board, which brings together a group of front-line experts from across the health and care system including the UK Sepsis Trust, for advice on the best interventions to improve patient outcomes.NHS England and NHS Improvement will consider other recommendations of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Sepsis Annual Report 2019 in the context of its overall work on infection prevention.

Health: Children

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to encourage health and wellbeing boards to measure and monitor children's subjective well-being as a key outcome in their local area.

Caroline Dinenage: Health and Wellbeing Boards in England bring into one forum representatives from health, social services and the local community to decide what the main public health needs of the local population are, and to determine how best to meet them in an integrated and holistic manner. Health and Wellbeing Boards are required to produce Joint Strategic Needs Assessment (JSNA) for their area. Based on the needs identified the Board produces a Joint Health and Wellbeing Strategy (JHWS). Both the JSNA and JHWS must be taken into account by local authorities, clinical commissioning groups and NHS England when preparing or revising commissioning.We believe that local leaders are best placed to make decisions as to the need of the population they serve, including for children and young people’s wellbeing. Places such as Greater Manchester Combined Authority have produced a dedicated Children and Young People Health and Wellbeing Framework for 2018-2022.As health is a devolved matter in Wales, it would therefore be the responsibility of the Welsh Government to decide how to monitor children’s wellbeing.

Department for Education

Schools: Vacancies

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to provide a single jobs portal for all schools to advertise vacancies.

Nick Gibb: Holding answer received on 25 July 2019



Teaching Vacancies is a free job listing service for schools to list teacher vacancies. A phased roll out commenced in September 2018 with the official national launch in April 2019. To date, 60% of schools have signed up to use the service.The Teaching Vacancies website is available here: https://teaching-vacancies.service.gov.uk/.

Ministry of Justice

Youth Custody

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made the potential merits of requiring young people entering the secure system to undertake an individual assessment to ensure that (a) vulnerabilities and (b) trigger points are (i) identified and (ii) regularly reviewed in an individual care plan.

Edward Argar: Professionals undertake a number of assessments on Children and Young People (CYP) when they enter the Youth Secure Estate in order to identify and review any vulnerabilities they have. The Comprehensive Health Assessment Tool (CHAT) provides screening and assessment for all CYP across the youth justice system, allowing for early identification of needs and requirements to support their care. An initial assessment is made before the first night in custody to assess any immediate needs or requirements, with a wide range of vulnerabilities and triggers screened for. This is followed by further physical and mental health assessments. In addition, the Youth Custody Service use information provided by the Youth Offending Team to determine suitability for a particular placement into either a Secure Children’s Home, a Secure Training Centre or a Young Offender Institution. When making this determination a wide range of factors are considered, including, but not limited to, risk of harm to self and others, welfare, and medical history, including mental health. As well as this we are working closely with the NHS on ‘Secure Stairs’, an integrated approach to strengthen the provision of health care to address the needs of young people holistically and co-ordinates services through a coherent, joined up approach. This will ensure CYP receive a full needs assessment and a tailored care and support plan.

Terrorism: Manchester Arena

Rebecca Long Bailey: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether businesses that have been adversely affected by the Manchester bombing of 22 May 2017 are entitled to support through the victim's compensation scheme.

Edward Argar: The purpose of the statutory Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme is to make compensatory awards to individual persons who have sustained a serious physical and/or mental injury as a direct result of a violent crime, and to family members of those killed. Businesses impacted by the Manchester Bombing of 22 May 2017 do not fall under the ambit of the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme 2012. Crimes of violence for the purposes of the Scheme include physical and sexual assault, acts of a violent nature that cause physical injury, and threats against a person causing fear of immediate violence (in circumstances which would cause a person of reasonable firmness to be put in such fear). The Scheme provides for awards based upon a tariff of serious physical and mental injuries. Only injuries which are listed on the tariff can be compensated.

Youth Offending Teams: Grants

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 5 June 2019 to Question 252658 on Youth Offending Teams: Grants, what the real terms change was in the value of Youth justice grants allocated to each local authority to fund Youth Offending Teams between 2010-11 and 2019-20.

Edward Argar: The real terms change in the value of youth justice grant allocated to each local authority to help fund Youth Offending Teams (YOT) between 2010/11 and 2017/18 is set out in the table below. Published totals for 2018/19 and 2019/20 are not yet available. Data for 2018/19 will shortly be available in aggregate form in the Youth Justice Board’s annual accounts and will be published at YOT level in the annual statistics published in January 2020. Data for 2019/20 will be available one year later. The overall youth justice grant has reduced by 56% (in real terms) between 2010/11 and 2017/18. This is set against a 69% reduction in the number of First Time Entrant’s into the youth justice system.



PQ 276569 Table
(Excel SpreadSheet, 32.27 KB)

Slavery: Victims

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the number of victims of modern slavery in prison.

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate his Department has made of the number of child victims of modern slavery in custody.

Edward Argar: The Government introduced a statutory defence for victims of modern slavery (both under and over the age of 18), to protect those very vulnerable people who were previously being unfairly prosecuted for crimes they were forced to commit by their exploiters – notably cannabis cultivation. We are aware of concerns from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) and the police that the defence is open to abuse from opportunistic criminals who are not victims, to escape justice for their crimes. That is why my rt hon Friend the Home Secretary asked the independent review of the Modern Slavery Act to examine how the statutory defence was working in practice. The report of the review was published in May. It found that the defence strikes the correct balance between protecting genuine victims and preventing misuse from opportunistic criminals. My rt hon Friend the Home Secretary is considering the review’s findings, and the Home Office will work closely with the CPS and law enforcement agencies to take the report’s recommendations forward. A copy of the final report of the Independent Modern Slavery Act Review can be found via the link below: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/independent-review-of-the-modern-slavery-act-final-report To determine how many people who at some point in their lives have been victims of modern slavery are currently in custody would require a search of individual records and could not be done without incurring disproportionate cost.

Civil Proceedings: EU Countries

Chuka Umunna: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the Guidance on how to prepare for Brexit if there's no deal, published by the Department for Exiting the European Union, whether his Department has implemented the parts of the plan entitled, Handling civil legal cases that involve EU countries if there’s no Brexit deal.

Edward Argar: The Government has laid 13 Statutory Instruments to put into effect the approach set out in the paper “Handling civil legal cases that involve EU countries if there is no Brexit deal”. These Statutory Instruments ensure that the statute book will function effectively in the area of civil judicial cooperation if we leave without a deal. We have also provided guidance on the website ‘gov.uk’, for both legal practitioners and the public on how cross border civil and family cases will be handled in the event of a no deal:Guidance for legal professionals on family law after Brexit (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/family-law-disputes-involving-eu-after-brexit-guidance-for-legal-professionals/family-law-disputes-involving-eu-after-brexit-guidance-for-legal-professionals)Guidance for legal professionals on civil and commercial law after Brexit (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cross-border-civil-and-commercial-legal-cases-after-brexit-guidance-for-legal-professionals/cross-border-civil-and-commercial-legal-cases-after-brexit-guidance-for-legal-professionals)Guidance for members of the public involved in family law disputes:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/family-law-disputes-involving-eu-after-brexit.

Ministry of Justice: Ethnic Groups

Seema Malhotra: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many BAME staff are employed at (a) grade 7, (b) grade 5 and (c) grade 3 in his Department.

Edward Argar: In the MoJ (including HMPPS) on 31 March 2019, excluding staff on unpaid leave: There were 2,424 Grade 7 and Grade 6 staff, of whom 1,989 had declared their ethnicity; of these 224 were BAME. This means that 11.3% of Grade 7 and Grade 6 staff with known ethnicity were BAME. There were 230 Grade 5 staff, of whom 200 had declared their ethnicity; of these 11 were BAME. This means that 5.5% of Grade 5 staff with known ethnicity were BAME. There were 54 Grade 3 staff, of whom 46 had declared their ethnicity; the number of these who were BAME was less than three.  This is based on staff voluntarily recording their ethnicity data on the HR system (SOP).

Ministry of Justice: Credit Unions

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 9 July 2019 to Question 271348, for what reasons his Department does not offer a payroll deduction service to enable employees to join a credit union; and if he will make a statement.

Edward Argar: The Ministry of Justice does not have the facility to allow staff to join a credit union through payroll deductions. Staff can still make arrangements to contribute to a credit union via direct debit. Although the Ministry does not currently offer such facility, we continue to explore options to support staff with financial wellbeing.

Prison Officers: Criminal Injuries Compensation

Andrew Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prison officers have made applications under the criminal injury compensation scheme in each year since 2010.

Andrew Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many prison officers were awarded compensation under the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme in each year since 2010.

Andrew Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the total amount awarded was each year to prison officers under the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme in each year since 2010.

Edward Argar: The information requested is not available. The Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority does not ask an applicant to provide their occupation when applying for compensation.

Fines: Surcharges

Gloria De Piero: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 10 July 2019 to Question 273770 on Fines: Surcharges, how much funding has been allocated from the Victim Surcharge to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme in each year since 2014.

Edward Argar: The Victim and Witness Budget, which is used to fund support service for victims and witnesses, is set each year and includes a forecasted contribution from revenue raised through the Victim Surcharge. Between 2015/16 and 2018/19 the revenue raised from the Surcharge surpassed the forecasted contribution, so the excess was put towards compensating victims of violent crime through the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme. However, we have now changed our procedures so that from this financial year, all revenue raised will be included in the Surcharge contribution to Victim and Witness Budget. Financial YearVictim Surcharge (VS) Collected *VS contribution to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme*2014/15£24m02015/16£28m£10m2016/17£31m£4m2017/18£35m£4m2018/19£34m£3m* Rounded to the nearest £1m

Ministry of Justice: Contracts

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much has been paid by each private company with a contract with the Department in financial remedies and what the reason was for those financial remedies in each year since 2010.

Edward Argar: This information can only be obtained at a disproportionate cost.

Rape Crisis Centres: Expenditure

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the real-terms changes in the level of funding for rape crisis centres were between 2010 and 2018.

Edward Argar: Rape support centres receive funding from multiple sources, including government funding and charitable trusts.The Ministry of Justice allocated the following funding to support rape support services across England and Wales:2010-11*Not possible to disaggregate2011-12£3.4m2012-13£3.9m2013-14£3.9m2014-15£4.4m2015-16£4.7m2016/17£7.2m2017/18£7.2m2018/19£7.2m* The Ministry of Justice provided total funding of £2.1m in 2010-11 for sexual violence and domestic violence support services.In March this year we increased the central funding available to these services by 10% - up to £8m per year and made a commitment of £24m over three years.The Ministry of Justice also allocates around £68 million a year to Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) to locally commission or provide support services for victims of crime, including victims of sexual violence. £4.7m of this is ringfenced for spend on victims of child sexual abuse. In 2017/18, PCCs reported spending £15.9m on supporting victims of sexual violence. £8.4m of this was from the MoJ grant and £7.5m from other funding sources.

Youth Justice Board: Grants

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the value of the Youth Justice Board grant to each local authority was in 2018-19.

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the value was of the Youth Justice Board grant to each local authority in 2019-20.

Edward Argar: Published totals by local authority for 2018/19 and 2019/20 are not yet available. Data for 2018/19 will be published at YOT level in the annual statistics published in early 2020. Data for 2019/20 will be available one year later.

Ministry of Defence

Mali: Peacekeeping Operations

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which units of the British Army will be deployed to Mali on peacekeeping operations in the first troop rotation.

Mark Lancaster: The Ministry of Defence is currently evaluating what unit and assets are best suited to the task required by the United Nation. This will be finalised in due course, prior to deployment in 2020. Further information can be found in the written statement made by the then Secretary of State for Defence (Penny Mordaunt) on 22 July 2019, (HCWS1779).



UN Mission Update
(Word Document, 29.17 KB)

Joint Strike Fighter Aircraft

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the benefits of training F35 pilots in (a) the UK and (b) the US.

Mark Lancaster: The UK took the opportunity to embed personnel with the US Marine Corps and jointly develop the operational capability of the F35-B Lightning aircraft. By taking this collaborative approach, the UK has been able to train its personnel in advance of establishing our own Lightning footprint in the UK.In July this year, personnel returned from the US to establish the Operational Conversion Unit at RAF Marham to enable the UK to conduct its own training.The UK continues to work closely with its allies to develop the F-35 programme to ensure freedom of action having initially exploited this collaborative route to training.

Military Aircraft

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what recent assessment she has made of the potential merits of developing hypersonic propulsion systems for military aircraft.

Mark Lancaster: The next generation acquisition programme will deliver the capability required when Typhoon leaves RAF service. As part of the concept phase, a variety of concepts to deliver the required capability are being considered. These will include hypersonic weapon concepts as part of the next generation combat air system.

Department for Work and Pensions

Department for Work and Pensions: Working Hours

Jon Trickett: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much time off in lieu has been taken by staff in her Department in each of the last five years.

Will Quince: DWP offers a Flexible Working Hours (FWH) policy which allows employees to accrue additional hours worked as a flexi credit that can then be taken as time off in lieu. The FWH policy is managed locally and DWP does not hold central records of how much time off in lieu has been taken by employees, therefore the information could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Jobcentre Plus: Training

Sarah Champion: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what training her Department provides to Jobcentre Plus staff on economic abuse as a form of domestic abuse.

Will Quince: DWP is committed to providing the best possible support for all our claimants, including the most vulnerable in society. This includes those who are, or have been, victims of domestic abuse. Our Work Coaches undergo a comprehensive learning journey designed to equip them with the tools, skills and behaviours required to provide a high quality service to all claimants. All Work Coaches receive training on how to support claimants with complex needs, which includes a module on identifying, supporting and signposting victims of abuse. In addition around 600 DWP staff across the UK are currently undergoing specialist training from expert organisation Women’s Aid. The newly assigned points of contact will be trained to identify and support the needs of anyone experiencing domestic abuse, and will work closely with local services to share knowledge and signpost women to additional, external support.

Universal Credit: Appeals

Marsha De Cordova: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of universal credit mandatory reconsiderations where the claimant was (a) represented and (b) not represented were successful; what proportion of unsuccessful mandatory reconsiderations where the claimant was (a) represented and (b) not represented were appealed; and how many of those appeals were successful.

Justin Tomlinson: The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Department for Work and Pensions: Ethnic Groups

Seema Malhotra: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many BAME staff are employed at (a) grade 7, (b) grade 5 and (c) grade 3 in her Department.

Will Quince: DWP encourages all of its employees to provide details of their personal diversity information, however this action is voluntary and therefore we do not hold a complete picture of our workforce representation. As at 30th June 2019, 82% of DWP’s workforce have positively shared details of their ethnicity. Details of the grades requested are:  GradeNumber of employees who have indicated they are an ethnic minority G790G57G3~ ~ In line with Office of National Statistics guidance data has been suppressed as count is less than 5 people

Welfare Assistance Schemes

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of the number of local authorities that no longer provide local welfare assistance schemes.

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will make it her policy to extend eligibility for local welfare assistance to families with dependent children that have no recourse to public funds conditions attached to their leave to remain in the UK.

Will Quince: The reforms to the Social Fund in 2013 allowed local authorities in England, and the devolved administrations in Scotland and Wales, to deliver their own local provision for people who are in need of urgent help. We passed funding over to local authorities and devolved administrations (from April 2013) on a non-ring-fenced basis, with no statutory duties or monitoring requirements attached. Local authorities are best placed to decide how to target flexible help to support local welfare needs. The Government has no plans to alter policy on LWP or to review this provision at this time.

Child Maintenance Service

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many times the Child Maintenance Service registered the maintenance debt of a non-resident parent with credit rating agencies in the last year.

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, on how many occasions her Department has registered the child maintenance debt of a non-resident parent with credit rating agencies.

Will Quince: This information is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Children: Maintenance

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what her Department's criteria is for registering the child maintenance debt of a non-resident parent with credit rating agencies.

Will Quince: This information is provided in our internal procedures. It is a discretionary decision and intended as a deterrent measure on those who may otherwise choose to evade maintenance payments, so getting more money flowing to the children and separated parents who need it.  We can consider referral to a Credit Reference Agency (CRA) in the following circumstance:when a Liability Order is in force against the non-resident21 days (plus postage timing and 2 days) have passed since a written notice was posted to the Paying Parent advising them that we intend to supply information about them to a CRAthe welfare of the child has been consideredthe Paying Parent has not agreed to a payment agreement where the outstanding amount will be repaid in line with our debt steer, of 2 years

Department for Work and Pensions: Pay

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to Written Question 265470 on Department for Work and Pensions: Pay, how much her Department spent on performance-related awards for Senior Civil Service officials in (a) 2014, (b) 2015, (c) 2016, (d) 2017, (e) 2018 and (f) January to June 2019.

Will Quince: Performance-related end year awards are given following the end of each appraisal year, which runs from 1 April to 31 March. From April 2016 Senior Civil Servants also became eligible for non-consolidated in-year performance awards to recognise outstanding contribution. Awards have not yet been made for the 2018/19 performance year; the total amounts paid out in end-year and in-year awards for the earlier periods requested are shown below.  Performance YearsTotal Spend on Performance Related Awards for SCS in DWP 2014-15£659,6752015-16£665,7002016-17£719,0002017-18£675,392

Silicosis

Ruth George: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what data her Department holds on the effect on family members of silicosis sufferers.

Justin Tomlinson: Dependants of silicosis sufferers who have died can claim compensation under the Pneumoconiosis etc. (Workers' Compensation) Act 1979 scheme. Under this scheme, the Department has paid £10,871 to dependants over the 17/18 and 18/19 financial years. Arrears of Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit (IIDB) may also be claimed by the spouse or civil partner of a deceased sufferer of silicosis. Information on the amount of IIDB paid to in these circumstances is not immediately accessible, and would require the merging, filtering and quality assuring of complex datasets, data on these claimants could only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Employment: Poverty

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to tackle the rise of in-work poverty.

Will Quince: There is clear evidence that work offers people the best opportunity to get out of poverty. A working-age adult living in a household where every adult is working is about 6 times less likely to be in relative poverty than one living in a household where nobody works. Universal Credit (UC) replaces six outdated and complex benefits with one – it is simplifying the benefits system and making work pay. As a result, people claiming UC move into work faster, stay in work longer and spend more time looking to increase their earnings. UC provides more help with childcare costs (eligible claimants are able to claim up to 85 per cent of their childcare costs, compared to 70% on the legacy system), a dedicated Work Coach, and removes the 16-hour ‘cliff edge’ for workers. The Department continues to conduct research and analysis to enhance our understanding surrounding working claimants, as well as working with stakeholders and customers to develop our approach. Our Work Coaches are fully trained to provide tailored advice on career development to help claimants explore ways to grow their earnings.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Nature Conservation

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pending the roll out of new rules on General Licences, what guidance his Department issues on permitted activities in (a) Special Areas of Conservation and (b) Special Protection Areas.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The new General Licences issued by Defra and published on the 14 June provides information and advice in regard to the application of those licences on or within 300 metres of the boundary of protected sites, which include Special Areas of Conservation and Special Protection Areas. Underpinning with Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) designation provides the key mechanism to manage terrestrial European sites. General guidance on the consenting process for permitted activities on SSSIs is published on Gov.uk: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/protected-areas-sites-of-special-scientific-interest

Seabed: Mining

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential environmental effects of the disturbance of deep-sea carbon stores through deep-sea mining.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Defra is investigating the environmental effects of deep-sea mining through the Deep-sea Mining Cross Government Working Group, which includes Cefas, the Joint Nature Conservation Committee, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. The working group is supported by input from the National Oceanography Centre, Natural History Museum and British Geological Survey. The group intends to cover the effects of the disturbance of deep sea carbon stores in its forthcoming meetings.

Seabed: Mining

Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the potential environmental effects of deep-sea mining.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Defra is investigating the environmental effects of deep-sea mining through a cross-Government working group including Cefas, the Joint Nature Conservation Committee, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO). The working group is supported by input from the National Oceanography Centre, Natural History Museum and British Geological Survey who are involved in a number of ongoing academic projects considering the impacts of deep sea mining. In addition, FCO and Defra commissioned a workshop in February 2019 which brought together UK universities, industry and consultancies involved in the assessment of deep sea mining activities, to share information, progress and research findings. The outputs of these discussions are being used to inform the UK’s input into the development of regulations, standards and guidelines at the International Seabed Authority.

Waste Management

Sandy Martin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many local waste collection authorities own arms-length commercial waste collection services.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: We do not record this information.

Agriculture: Plastics

Sandy Martin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans the Government has to tackle agricultural plastic pollution.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: I refer the Hon. Member to the reply given to the Hon. Member for Delyn, David Hanson, on 1 July 2019, PQ 268406.

Waste Disposal: Crime

Sandy Martin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much has been spent on tackling waste crime in the last five years.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: In tackling waste crime the Environment Agency has spent: (in millions) £13.4m in 2013/14£11.2m in 2014/15£11.4m in 2015/16£10.8m in 2016/17£10.7m in 2017/18 Data for 2018/19 has not yet been released.

Eutrophication

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what nationwide strategy is in place to tackle the effects of eutrophication.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The River Basin Management Plans developed by the Environment Agency (EA) provide the means for tackling eutrophication as necessary across England. Risk-based monitoring is undertaken to identify waters affected by or at risk from eutrophication. Measures to control and diffuse sources of nutrients are then targeted within the catchments of affected water bodies. Some of these measures involve formal designations under regulations for the Urban Waste Water Treatment and Nitrates Directives regulations. Other measures are for improvements or to prevent deterioration against standards and targets for nutrients that are designed to address eutrophication impacts. In addition, some nationwide measures, such a restriction of phosphorus in detergents, and Farming Rules for Water, have been introduced to bear down on nutrient pressures.

Motor Vehicles: Exhaust Emissions

Ian Lavery: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions his Department has had with the Department for Transport on reducing emissions on UK roads.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Joint Air Quality Unit (JAQU) was established in April 2016 to develop and implement plans for delivering compliance with nitrogen dioxide (NO2) limits. JAQU is a Defra/ Department for Transport unit recognising the shared nature of this challenge, so there is regular ongoing dialogue between the two departments at all levels. This includes Ministerial meetings to discuss specific issues, monthly programme boards, and daily discussions at official level.

Sewage: Waste Disposal

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate he has made of the number of sewage releases by water companies in the last three months.

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many sewage releases there were by water company in each of the last six months.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: In England, sewage is collected and treated at approximately 5,500 water company sewage treatment works. Discharges from these works occur on a daily basis and are permitted by the Environment Agency. Additionally, during wet weather there may be discharges from storm overflows. Reports of both the volume of discharges from sewage treatment works and spill numbers from storm overflows in England are submitted to the Environment Agency on an annual basis as per the requirements in the permits. There is no routine requirement to provide reports at three or six monthly intervals. While no data is available specifically for the last three or six months, based on the latest reported data for 2018 the daily average volume of treated sewage discharge from sewage treatment works was 17.5 billion litres per day. Spill data was also reported for 6,182 storm overflows in England with a total of 146,930 spill events during 2018. There is currently a programme to install monitoring on the vast majority of overflows in England by 2020. This monitoring will measure how frequently and for how long an overflow operates.

Fly-tipping

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many enforcement actions have been carried out by local authorities against fly-tippers in (a) Barnsley, (b) South Yorkshire and (c) England in each year since 2010; and of those actions how many were fixed penalty notices.

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much has been spent on clearance costs for tipper lorry load fly-tipping by (a) Barnsley local authority and (b) other local authorities in the UK in each year since 2010.

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much has been spent on clearance costs for significant multi-load fly-tipping by (a) Barnsley local authority and (b) other local authorities in England in each year since 2010.

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate he has made of the proportion of fly-tipping incidents that were categorised as tipper lorry load size or larger in (a) Barnsley, (b) South Yorkshire and (c) England in each year since 2010.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Enforcement actions reported by local authorities and published in annual statistics on a financial year basis are summarised in the table below.BarnsleySouth Yorkshire*All England2010 - 1169910,357568,0522011 - 1252511,666489,8152012 - 1350310,555425,2352013 - 1413412,502499,5632014 - 1515219,083514,9142015 - 1619314,026494,5282016 - 1729913,783475,7842017 - 1874115,118494,127   *Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham and Sheffield   Source: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/env24-fly-tipping-incidents-and-actions-taken-in-england Fixed penalty notice actions reported by local authorities and published in annual statistics on a financial year basis are summarised in the table below. In May 2016, local authorities in England were given the power to issue fixed penalty notices for small scale fly-tipping so these will be captured in the data for 2016/17 and 2017/18. Prior to this date, local authorities issued fly-tippers with fixed penalty notices in relation to littering, duty of care or anti-social behaviour.   BarnsleySouth Yorkshire*All England2010 - 11014432,9632011 - 12013439,3142012 - 13011035,4332013 - 14013236,8352014 - 1508938,1492015 - 1608135,8882016 - 17015557,2712017 - 18917568,711   *Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham and Sheffield   Source: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/env24-fly-tipping-incidents-and-actions-taken-in-englandClearance costs for tipper lorry load fly-tipping incidents reported by local authorities and published in annual statistics on a financial year basis are summarised in the table below. Note that the information can only be provided for local authorities in England and not for the UK. Details for individual local authorities are within the published datasets. Clearance costs are available from 2011/12.   BarnsleyEngland (excluding Barnsley)2011 - 12£39,561£3,007,3042012 - 13£22,461£3,321,9342013 - 14£15,892£4,233,0562014 - 15£27,435£4,841,4332015 - 16£14,419£3,969,5842016 - 17£14,125£6,083,2432017 - 18£16,035£6,472,430   Source: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/env24-fly-tipping-incidents-and-actions-taken-in-englandClearance costs for significant multi-load fly-tipping reported by local authorities and published in annual statistics on a financial year basis are summarised in the table below. Details for individual local authorities are within the published datasets. Clearance costs are available from 2011/12.   BarnsleyEngland (excluding Barnsley)2011 - 12£25,708£1,083,1062012 - 13£4,189£1,780,0352013 - 14£28,564£1,982,1862014 - 15£8,170£2,390,7942015 - 16£17,163£1,469,0672016 - 17£14,808£3,827,6532017 - 18£13,634£5,745,020   Source: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/env24-fly-tipping-incidents-and-actions-taken-in-englandThe proportion of fly-tipping incidents reported by local authorities and published in annual statistics on a financial year basis that are categorised as tipper lorry load or larger (significant/multi-load) is summarised in the table below. The detailed breakdown is available from 2011/12.   BarnsleySouth Yorkshire*All England2011 - 1215%3%2%2012 - 1311%3%2%2013 - 148%3%3%2014 - 154%6%3%2015 - 166%6%3%2016 - 175%8%3%2017 - 186%9%3%   *Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham and Sheffield   Source: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/env24-fly-tipping-incidents-and-actions-taken-in-england

Fly-tipping

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many instances of fly-tipping have been recorded in (a) Barnsley, (b) South Yorkshire and (c) England in each year since 2010.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Incidents of fly tipping reported by local authorities and published in annual statistics on a financial year basis, are summarised in the table below. YearBarnsleySouth Yorkshire*England2010/111,65468,346819,5712011/121,78558,435744,4142012/131,67730,744714,6372013/142,16228,481857,6552014/153,05720,979905,6042015/163,80421,967941,8962016/174,32823,3551,011,1992017/183,74623,216997,553 *Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham and Sheffield Source: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/env24-fly-tipping-incidents-and-actions-taken-in-england.

Birds: Conservation

David Warburton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he plans to include provisions in the proposed Environment Bill to tackle the use of netting on hedges, hedgerows and trees on development sites.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Environment Bill measures are currently being finalised and will be published in due course.On netting specifically, while it is not an offence to use netting to exclude birds from potential nesting sites, such action should only be used to help protect birds during development. It is for those who take exclusion measures to ensure the mesh size of netting is suitable for the species involved and is properly maintained so they don’t harm wild birds. We expect local planning authorities to look at these practices closely and take appropriate action where necessary.

Paper: Recycling

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions he has had with toilet tissue manufacturers on (a) increasing the amount of recycled pulp used in that tissue and (b) investing in more sustainable alternatives to paper-based products.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: We have not had any discussions with toilet tissue manufacturers on increasing the amount of recycled pulp used in that tissue or investing in more sustainable alternatives to paper based products.

Plastic Bags

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of introducing a complete ban on single-use plastic bags.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Government commissioned an independent study last year to assess the impacts of a potential ban on single-use carrier bags in England. Based on wide evidence, we are not currently considering an outright ban. We recognise the role that a single-use carrier bag can play in spontaneous unplanned purchasing, and that alternative bag types can potentially have a significantly higher carbon impact than single-use carrier bags. Consequently, we published a consultation to extend the existing carrier bag charge to all retailer and to increase the minimum charge to 10p. Both the summary and Government responses will be published in due course.

Fly-tipping

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate he has made of the proportion of fly-tipping incidents that were categorised as small van sized in (a) Barnsley, (b) South Yorkshire and (c) England in each year since 2010.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The proportion of fly-tipping incidents reported by local authorities and published in annual statistics on a financial year basis, that are categorised as small van load is summarised in the table below. The detailed breakdown is only available from 2011/12.  YearBarnsleySouth Yorkshire*All England2011/1244%29%32%2012/1342%30%31%2013/1444%34%33%2014/1533%33%31%2015/1639%28%33%2016/1739%33%33%2017/1840%40%32% *Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham and Sheffield Source: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/env24-fly-tipping-incidents-and-actions-taken-in-england

Biodiversity

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to enhance biodiversity.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Domestic biodiversity policy is a devolved matter and the information provided relates to England only, except in relation to our international activity.The 25 Year Environment Plan marks a step-change in ambition for wildlife and the natural environment internationally and in England. It sets out over two hundred actions to enhance the environment and has long-term goals for recovering nature.We are already delivering the 25 Year Plan commitments. We are bringing forward the first Environment Bill in over 20 years with ambitious measures to address the biggest environmental priorities of our age: air quality, thriving plants and wildlife, mitigation and adaptation to climate change, and clean and plentiful water.Agri-environment schemes provide financial incentives for farmers and land managers to look after the environment. We are developing a new Environmental Land Management scheme that will reward farmers and land managers for delivering environmental outcomes such as conserving and restoring habitats which will support our biodiversity goals.We work with partners to support the recovery of threatened species and their habitats. For example, Natural England are working with landowners and conservation organisations on the Back from the Brink programme, which aims to put over 100 threatened species on the road to recovery by 2020.At sea, we are expanding our protected areas. An ambitious third tranche of 41 Marine Conservation Zones were designated in May 2019.Nature matters, but the ongoing decline in nature is a global problem that requires leadership and global action. Our Darwin Initiative programme funds projects to protect biodiversity and the natural environment in developing countries, with £10.3 million awarded in 2018/19. The UK Government is investing more than £36 million between 2014 and 2021 to counter the illegal wildlife trade and we are introducing one of the world’s toughest ivory bans.The UK has committed to continuing its leading role in global biodiversity conservation, including calling for at least 30 per cent of the ocean to be in Marine Protected Areas by 2030 and negotiating hard to agree a global post-2020 framework under the Convention on Biological Diversity that is both ambitious and transformational.

Sewage: Pollution

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to ensure water companies reduce the number of pollution incidents.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Since 1995 over £25 billion has been invested in improving sewage treatment and sewerage collection systems. This has achieved a 61% reduction in the amount of phosphorus and a 72% reduction in the amount of ammonia discharged to rivers. Bathing waters and rivers are cleaner than ever but there is still more to do. The recent deterioration in the environmental performance of the water industry, particularly in respect of pollution incidents is unacceptable. The Environment Agency (EA) expect the industry to minimise serious pollution incidents and approach a zero target by 2020. The EA has begun a new Improving Water Company Performance programme which will toughen regulation to encourage the companies to meet their environmental targets. The programme will include: Enhancing the EA’s regulatory tools and approaches, including more inspections, increasing the number of in-depth audits and greater use of technology to remotely monitor operations twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.Maximising the use of enforcement and sanctions powers so they act as a powerful deterrent.Updating the Environmental Performance Assessment targets for the 2021-2025 period to include a broader range of measures with tightened standards where appropriate.Working with Ofwat to develop greater links between environmental performance and financial penalties and incentives.Requiring water companies to produce root cause analysis reports for serious pollution incidents and to learn from them.Requiring water companies to produce a pollution reduction plan signed off at CEO level which they will be accountable for.Requesting that they proactively share good practice as an industry wide response to the problems we are facing

Cabinet Office

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the electoral registration rate was in each year since 1997 in the 100 parliamentary constituencies which have had the largest decrease in the number of electors on the register from the date of the local boundary review to July 2019.

Oliver Dowden: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.



UKSA Response
(PDF Document, 44.59 KB)

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Tourism: Coastal Areas

Carolyn Harris: To ask the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, when the tourism sector deal will be implemented; and if it will prioritise the regeneration of seaside towns.

Rebecca Pow: The Tourism Sector Deal was published on the 28th June with the aim of helping the tourism industry across the whole of the UK. The Deal sets a series of ambitions towards 2025, against which we will report annually. We have invested in product development through the £40m Discover England Fund. In March 2019, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government’s Coastal Communities Fund and Coastal Revival Fund announced a further £36m of funding for our coastal towns. The House of Lords Select Committee reported in April 2019 on Regenerating Seaside Towns and the Government’s response was published on 4 June, with a debate on the response held in the House of Lords on 1 July. The report included recommendations relating to the Tourism Sector Deal, which the government broadly accepted and is now in the process of taking forward.

House of Commons Commission

Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme

Justin Madders: To ask the right hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington, representing the House of Commons Commission, what sanctions have been imposed on hon. Members since the introduction of the Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme.

Tom Brake: The issue of sanctions is the responsibility of the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards and/or the Committee on Standards, not the Commission. I note that the Committee on Standards is currently holding an inquiry on the issue of sanctions and intends to put to the House a package of proposed reforms to the sanctions regime for approval during autumn 2019.

Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme

Justin Madders: To ask the right hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington, representing the House of Commons Commission, what range of sanctions against hon. Members are available for complaints upheld under the Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme.

Tom Brake: A number of sanctions are available to the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards and the Committee on Standards, if a complaint is upheld against a Member of Parliament under the Independent Complaints and Grievance Scheme. The sanction will depend on the nature of the behaviour that has been found to have taken place and can include:Letter of apology to the complainantAppropriate training e.g. dignity in the workplaceA behaviour agreementA referral by the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards to the Committee on Standards where a stronger sanction is warranted, up to and including a recommendation that a Member be suspended or expelled from the House.Further possible sanctions, including withdrawal of services (e.g. catering or library services), or a ban on select committee membership or participation in overseas travel on parliamentary business, are being considered as part of the Committee on Standards’ current inquiry into sanctions. The Committee intends to put to the House a package of proposed reforms to the sanctions regime for approval during autumn 2019.